Apple has been meticulously planning the launch of Apple Watch, with advertising in full swing, getting print ads in top magazines, integrating fitness blog page by top model Christy Turlington Burns and also giving third-party app developers access to the hardware much before the launch.

Unlike the iPhone that launched without the App Store, the Apple Watch just like the iPad will launch with many third-party apps available on launch day. Apple has been showcasing apps like Target, American Airlines, Instagram, Twitter, ESPN and many more.

YouVersion the developers of The Bible app for iOS earlier today announced the availability of The Bible app for the Apple Watch. The app will be available when the Apple Watch ships.

The Bible app for Apple Watch includes features from its iOS app specifically reimagined for the watch. The app will bring Verse of the Day, Friends Notifications, Trending Verses and Your Verse Images, Bookmarks, and Highlights.

The developers state that their mission with the app is to simply, “help you engage with the Bible.”

Because we’re convinced that when you spend time with the Bible, either reading or listening, and then carefully reflect on what it’s saying to you, God’s Spirit will do something inside of you. His words will change you, make you into a new person. Ultimately, His words will draw you closer to Him.

Seven years ago when the App Store for the iPhone was launched YouVersion’s Bible app was amongst the first 200 apps approved for the launch day. Just like the iPhone version, the Apple Watch version will also be available on launch day.

Have you pre-ordered the Apple Watch yet? Share the model you’ve ordered in the comments section below.

Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) and Apple Inc. (AAPL) have been competing in the ereader and tablet market for over a year now, since the iPad was introduced. On Friday, a report from Bloomberg mentioned that Amazon is now looking to introduce its own smartphone to take on the iPhone and some of the leading Android devices in the market.

A smartphone would give Amazon a wider range of low-priced hardware devices that bolster its strategy of making money from digital books, songs and movies. It would help Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos — who made a foray into tablets with the Kindle Fire — carve out a slice of the market for advanced wireless handsets.

Amazon has one of the most popular ereaders out on the market, the Kindle and is also leading the industry with some of its other products, including its cloud services and tablet computer, the Kindle Fire. The report mentions that Amazon is set to acquire a portfolio of patents that would allow the company to take steps in competing directly with some of the top competitors.

The rumored smartphone would likely borrow certain aspects of the Kindle Fire, including features such as purchasing books, magazines, and newspapers from Amazon’s store as well as using Amazon’s Cloud Drive as external storage. Amazon currently operates services that control a considerable portion of the digital content available online. By introducing a smartphone alongside its tablet and pairing with its online content, Amazon could very well present the iPhone with a serious competitor in the smartphone market.

{Via MacRumors}

Time Inc. and Apple have had a longstanding relationship, which hasn’t always been the best. According to a report from AllThingsD, Time Inc has now negotiated and announced that they will begin to offer a number of their magazines through Digital Magazine subscriptions in Apple’s Newsstand. About 2 years ago, Time Inc. backed out of plans to introduced Sports Illustrated through Newsstand because they refused to follow Apple’s rule that the company bill customers through the iTunes Store billing method and instead opted to bill customers directly through their own service.

As a result, the deal fell through and was not brought up until now. Time Inc. mentioned in the press release that they are looking to introduce all 20 of their magazines through the Newsstand Digital Magazine model, a collection that includes magazines such as Time, People, and Fortune. Even though Time Inc. didn’t follow Apple’s digital magazine subscription, allowed print subscribers of their magazines to access the full issues on the iPad. This is the first time that Time will be working with Apple on subscriptions and will give up a portion of its new subscription revenue.

It still remains unclear what caused the two companies to hash out a deal, as noted by AllThingsD. However, it is likely that Apple showed that Time could benefit from their widespread user base and Time did the same with their reader base. It appears that in this deal, both companies have a chance to benefit one way or another.

It could be as simple as Time Inc. trying to boost sales, which haven’t been stellar recently — a slump at its People magazine title is particularly troublesome for the publisher. Or perhaps parent company Time Warner got some other concession from Apple for one of its other units, like HBO or Turner.

Pricing for the digital subscriptions via iTunes has not yet been announced, but will likely be similar in price to some titles that Time currently offers, such as Sports Illustrated which sells for a $3.99 monthly rate or a $38.99 annual rate. A portion of that money will go to Apple, which is what initially prevented Time from entering a deal with the Cupertino based company.

{via MacRumors}

TORONTO, ON — October 27, 2010 — Kobo, a global eReading service, today announced that a selection of the most popular newspapers and magazines are now available for download with a two -week FREE trial from the Kobo store. Effective immediately, dozens of top U.S. and Canadian publications have been added to Kobo, which currently boasts over 2.2 million eBooks including the hottest new releases, New York Times bestsellers, timeless literary masterpieces and thousands of free titles.

The Kobo Store now offers the following digital publications across select Kobo devices and Apps: The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Scientist, The Seattle Times, Wilson Quarterly, Foreign Affairs, American Scholar, China International Business, Columbus Dispatch , Guideposts, Harvard Business Review, National Review, New York Observer, PC Magazine, Publishers Weekly, Reason, The Christian Science Monitor Daily Briefing, The Nation, Calgary Herald, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, National Post, Ottawa Citizen, Regina Leader-Post, Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, Vancouver Province, Vancouver Sun, Victoria Times-Colonist, and The Globe & Mail. Kobo will be continuing to expand its newspaper and magazine offering to ensure that we have all the publications that people want to read worldwide.

Delivering on the Kobo promise of providing consumers with a best-in-class eReading experience, Kobo’s newspapers and magazines are formatted to bring publications’ same unique qualities to the digital format. Readers can customize their content by selecting from several text sizes – enabling an optimal and comfortable reading experience. Readers can also now organize select newspapers and magazines, along with their eBooks, on the Kobo Wireless eReader, the iPhone and on the iPad. Reading books and select newspapers and magazines is seamless across devices, as users can pick up where they last left off with Kobo Sync.

“Kobo continues to build on our commitment of making sure that consumers have the best reading experience on any device with the largest selection of content worldwide, ” said Michael Serbinis, CEO of Kobo. “We’ve had tremendous success with eBooks and we’re very excited to expand the Kobo offering to include newspapers and magazines with a two-week free trial, allowing consumers to try first without any obligation. We continue to bring on top publishers to ensure that Kobo’s newspaper and magazine offering meets our customers’ highest expectations.”

The addition of newspapers and magazines allows Kobo customers to purchase their favorite publications through a monthly subscription. Following a two-week free trial – monthly subscriptions start as low as: $13.99 for newspapers and $2.99 for magazines. The current edition of a newspaper or magazine can be immediately added to a customer’s library, and with the subscription, customers will receive wireless delivery directly to their Kobo iPad or iPhone App or their Kobo Wireless eReader. It is so convenient – readers can now get their morning paper delivered right to their Kobo Wireless eReader just in time to enjoy with their morning coffee. The new Kobo iPhone and iPad apps are available for download today from the iTunes App Store. Subscriptions and 2 week free trials can be accessed directly from the iPad, iPhone, and the Kobo Wireless eReader’s onboard store, or from the Kobo Newsstand at www.kobobooks.com.

For more information, visit www.kobobooks.com.

*Pricing and delivery method varies based on the publication.

About Kobo, Inc.

Kobo is a global eReading service backed by majority shareholder Indigo Books & Music, Borders Group, REDgroup Retail, and Cheung Kong Holdings. Kobo believes consumers should be able to read any book on any device. With a catalog of over two million eBooks, and an open platform, Kobo enables retailers, device manufacturers and mobile operators to bring the joy of eReading to customers everywhere. For more information, visit www.kobobooks.com.